I was interested to hear of your comparative tests with amidol and Dektol. my
comparison was between amidol and Ilford PQ Universal.
We too shot on 5 x 4 using Fp 4. We set up a still life and gave it very
contrasty lighting. We wanted to test the medium to the limit. We were seeking
detail in the shadows and the highlights over a seven stop range. Most of the
standard film developers failed hopelessly, but then they are not designed to
perform in that way. HC 110 worked well at high temperature and a fairly high
concentration. But the acid amidol gave good separation of tones in the shadows,
a black stone bottle against a black velvet background and a patterned self
coloured black silk scarf. The highlights were a white shell and a white silk
scarf.
When the negative with a range of 2.1 was printed onto platinum coated paper we
got the full range of tone with detail and separation across the range. The PQ
did not do so well in the shadows; the black bottle did not stand out as well
against the black velvet.
I think the extra trouble with the amidol is worth the candle.
How did the prints compare in your tests.
Terry